JALANDAR: Four former top Indian players, including Olympians, have announced they will return their sports awards in support of the farmers’ agitation and to protest against the maltreatment meted out to protesters on way to Delhi. These players, who have decided to proceed to Delhi on December 5, said that more former players are likely to follow suit.
Addressing a press conference on Monday, they said if the farmers are not heard till December 5, they would proceed to Delhi, and would try to place their awards outside Rashtrapati Bhavan whenever possible.
“In the last few months, there has not been a single incidence of any disturbance by farmers. Still they were targeted by the police on way to Delhi by the Khattar government in Haryana at the behest of the Centre. If turbans and honour of our elders are not safe, the honours and awards are of no use to us,” said India’s former top wrestler and Padma awardee Kartar Singh, Indian hockey’s golden girl and Arjuna Awardee Rajbir Kaur, Arjuna awardee basketball player Sajjan Singh Cheema and former hockey Olympian and Arjuna award winner Gurmel Singh. Former cricket coach Rajinder Singh also lent his supported them.
The former sports stars said that farmers had the democratic right to protest. “Tear gas, water cannons and lathis were used on them even when they were protesting peacefully,” they said.
Kartar Singh retired as IG of Punjab Police while Sajjan Singh Cheema remained SSP in Vigilance Bureau as well as district police chief. Gurmel Singh retired as SP while Rajbir, a former women’s hockey team captain, is a bank ex-official. Kartar Singh was also the Punjab director of sports where he served on deputation from the state police. He won gold medals in 1978 (Bangkok) and 1986 (Seoul) Asian Games freestyle wrestling competition. He won a silver in the 1982 Delhi Asiad.